Nightmares
by StarLight9
Summary: Little Eldarion’s sleep is troubled by nightmares. But when no one is able to help him, the child will find a way to help himself. Written for Teitho Childhood Fears challenge


_**Nightmares**_

**Rated:** K

**Disclaimer:** I don't own any recognizable characters.

**Summary:** Little Eldarion's sleep is troubled by nightmares. But when no one is able to help him, the child will find a way to help himself.

**Note: **This was written for the Teitho Challenge "Childhood Fears". I didn't have any time to write this month, but this was going to be my twelfth month in a row writing for Teitho, and I didn't want to miss it, so I wrote this little story in about an hour and a half. Another one of my little Eldarion stories.

-

The Gondor royal family was sleeping peacefully after another long day of stress and hard work. The queen shifted in her sleep and her hand unconsciously sought her husband's. King Elessar smiled slightly as their fingers entwined, and he turned to his side without ever waking up. His features were relaxed and free of the lines of worry that usually marred his face during the day.

Suddenly the silence of the night was pierced by a scream of fear and alarm. Aragorn stood up immediately, his eyes wide in the darkness. His wife stood next to him, the fair face frowned in concern. They exchanged a tired look before rushing into the adjoined bedroom.

For a seventh day in a row the royal family was awoken in the middle of the night by a familiar cry. And for a seventh day in a row they had both rushed into their son's chamber. And once again Arwen held the distressed six-year-old in her arms, gently caressing the tousled hair and whispering soft works of comfort.

"I saw them, _nana_! I saw them, I swear! They were by my bed!"

Aragorn sat on his son's bed and buried his face in his hands with a worried sigh. No matter how hard he had tried, he had failed to understand what ailed his little child. He had fed the boy various potions and had tried to reach into the child's mind, hoping to see the source of this constant fear. But it had all been in vain. The great healer had proven helpless in the face of his son's terrors.

The nightmares repeated. And they were the same every night. Two men with masked faces and dark robes entered the room and walked towards Eldarion. He always woke up at that point. Why would his son dream of such a thing, he could never begin to guess.

"It's not a dream, _ada_! They were real! I saw them! Why don't you believe me? I never lie!" Tears were streaming down the pale cheeks, and Arwen rocked him gently.

"Shh, Eldarion, no one was here. No one was here, and no one will harm you."

"You don't believe me!" The child sobbed quietly. "But they were here. And they will come again."

Aragorn's face was tense in concern when he looked through the window at the starry sky, trying to find an answer to the riddle. But no answer came. These night visions were slowly destroying his son's sleep and his health. This could not continue, but he was unable to stop it.

"They will come again," Eldarion whispered with such a strong conviction that his father's heart ached. And he, who had faced without fear the mightiest foes, not trembled in horror and helplessness before his son's nightmares.

---

Arwen played nervously with a long strand of silky hair and gazed through the window. "I do not know what we should do, Estel, I cannot see what is causing this distress," she said and sighed in frustration. They had indeed tried everything, all known and unknown remedies, but the dream of the two masked men returned every night.

"Maybe they will go away with time," Aragorn said hopefully. "I also used to have nightmares when I was his age."

"You had a reason for your nightmares, _meleth_," she whispered sadly. "To have your father killed and to be forced to flee to safety can leave a great scar to a two-year-old." She squeezed his hand and raised her stormy eyes, filled with worry. "But Eldarion has no reason to fear! He has always been kept away from harm. What did we do wrong?" The queen's voice trembled in insecurity, and she looked pleadingly at her husband, asking for reassurance.

He gently cupped her cheek and tried to force a smile. "We didn't do anything wrong, my love. We will find what is causing this, and we will end it. Eldarion is strong, he can fight this. Trust our son."

"I do," Arwen said and returned the smile. "Forgive me, Estel, I shouldn't be troubling you right now, you have a meeting to attend."

Aragorn sighed at the mention of the event. After another sleepless night he was in no mood to meet the delegation from Harad and discuss trade relationships between the two lands. He would have preferred to be helping Eldarion, but being a king and a father at the same time was quite a difficult combination.

"I will meet the men from Harad," he said. "And I will talk to Eldarion after that."

Arwen nodded. She would talk to Eldarion before that, but she had done it already with little progress. The child seemed normal and peaceful. But every time the nightmare was mentioned, the boy became restless and agitated, claiming that it had been no dream, and he had really seen the men. She had tried to assure him that his room was carefully guarded and no one could come in, but Eldarion insisted that he was right.

She could only hope that they would find a way to help him. To see her little child like that filled her heart with grief.

---

"Curse this bloody boy and his light sleep!" Ranek muttered under his breath and pushed his glass angrily, letting the ale spill on the table.

"Perhaps we should give up?" Geran suggested.

"No!" Ranek shouted and his eyes shone in denial. "I will never give up! I want this jewel! Do you have any idea how much it is worth?"

The man had been obsessed by the Evenstar the first time he had seen it around the young prince's neck. It was the most incredible jewel he had ever seen, so bright and flawless. He had never seen a necklace this beautiful, and even the ones made by the most skillful goldsmiths looked plain compared to it.

He could easily imagine what price he could receive for this little treasure. True, it would be hard to sell it in Gondor since the fine jewel would be missed, and no one would dare to wear it in public, but he could always travel north to Rohan, or south to Harad or even Umbar, and sell it there. He could always find a wealthy lord, willing to gift it to the lady who possessed his heart. Ranek grinned. Fools. There were so much better things one could do with money.

Naturally, stealing the Evenstar had not proven to be an easy task. There were two men guarding the prince's door at night, so they first had to earn their trust. Fortunately for Ranek and Geran, both guards had turned out to be lovers of good ale, and after a few treats in the local tavern, they had become fast friends.

When Ranek and Geran helpfully offered the guards to watch the prince's room for a few hours while they visited the inn, the men gratefully accepted the friendly offer. _It will be so easy_, Ranek had thought then. _We only need to enter the room, walk by the boy's bed, and take it. Maybe tomorrow the loss will be discovered, but we will be too far away for their reach._

They had entered the room, and Ranek had grinned in delight. The foolish boy was wearing the jewel even in his sleep. That would spare them the need to search all closets and drawers, which could be lengthy and noisy.

What they had never taken into account, however, was that the keen-eared boy would wake up by the mere sound of their footsteps. And when a cry of fear and distress had sounded, they had run out of the room as swiftly as possible.

They had repeated this several nights in a row, much to the ale-loving guards' delight. But every single time the child had woken up, alerting everyone of his terror.

Fortunately, it seemed that the King and the Queen believed this to be mere nightmares. They would be rather surprised when they found the necklace missing. And this _would_ happen. Ranek grinned. Yes, it would. He would come to this chamber every single night if need be until the Evenstar was his.

---

"How is he faring?" Aragorn asked worriedly.

"The same," Arwen replied with a sigh. "He still believes that his dreams were real and refuses to calm down. I fear for him, Estel," She looked at him carefully. "How did the meeting with the Haradrim go?" She asked, gazing in concern at her husband's weary features.

"Nothing unexpected," Aragorn answered, trying to suppress a yawn. "The delegation brought us some presents. There is a very well made golden necklace for you, it would look wonderful if you wear it," he added, tracing with a finger her flawless neck. He was thoughtful for a moment, but then his lips curled into a smile. "And they also brought something I think might cheer up Eldarion."

---

"What is this?" The child stared in wonder at the long, yellow objects, yes, _objects_, for he lacked a better word to describe them. He had never seen anything like that before. He held one and examined it.

"They are fruits," Aragorn explained. "The Haradrim brought them as a present. I tasted them once, many years ago when I traveled to Harad, and the taste is most enjoyable. I thought that you might like them."

Eldarion eagerly bit a piece and his face twisted in disgust. "Yuck! _Ada_, this is horrible!"

Aragorn could not suppress a chuckle. "Of course it is, oh, Hungry One. But it would have tasted much better of you were patient enough to peel it first."

The child shrugged and started working on the unfamiliar fruit. He had no idea how to peel it, but after a few minutes of trial and error finally succeeded. The fruit was a lighter yellow on the inside, almost white. It was soft, and once Eldarion had taken a bite, his eyes widened.

"_Ada_, this is yummy!"

"I know," Aragorn smiled at his son. "They are called bananas. I wish we could grow some in Gondor, but the climate is too cold. I suppose we could import some, there are many goods we could offer Harad in exchange." He seemed lost in thought for a moment, but then his face brightened at a memory. "When I visited Harad, I wanted to take some to show to my brothers. But my road would have been long, and they would have never lasted. I did keep some of the peels, however," he added with a grin.

"The peels?" The little prince frowned in confusion. "But why? They taste terrible!"

"They have other uses," Aragorn said. "Do you know what happens if you accidentally step on a banana peel?"

As the king told a lengthy story, Eldarion's face brightened. He had just discovered a way to end his nightmares.

---

Ranek entered the room, clutching tightly a heavy club. Yes, they would have the necklace tonight, even if that meant hurting the kid to make him quiet. He took a step towards the bed, and…

Ranek screamed in surprise and pain as he slipped on something and landed on his back. He tried to rise, but slipped and fell down again, rubbing his hurting shoulder. The entire floor was covered with those _things_!

A quiet groan at his right showed him that Geran was not faring any better. The man was lying to his side, clutching his bruised knee.

The men tried to rise several times, always ending up on the floor. What was this devilry? They had never encountered anything like that.

Finally, Ranek managed to regain his footing and glared dangerously. The kid would pay.

But then suddenly a heavy object was thrown at him, and he lost his balance once again. The man grabbed the object, and realized with a considerable amount of shame that he had been defeated by a wooden toy-horse.

And before he could try to rise again, he felt the tip of a sword pointed at his chest. And in the darkness, he had no way to know that the toy-sword was wooden as well.

---

Arwen stretched in the bed and let the first sunrays caress her face. She breathed the fresh air and turned to her side, smiling at the sight of her still slumbering husband. Her hand gently brushed away a stray strand of hair, and her smile widened. He looked much more rested than the other nights.

Of course he would be more rested, he had slept through the entire night, without having to wake up to comfort Eldarion.

Eldarion… Arwen suddenly startled as she realized that for the first time in many nights her son hadn't awoken them with his frightened cries. She quickly shook her husband and rose to her feet.

"Mmm?" Aragorn mumbled sleepily, not even bothering to open his eyes.

"Get up, Estel!" She said, her voice filled with joy and excitement.

"Later," the man dismissed her, and turned to his other side in an attempt to ignore her.

Arwen smiled and shook her head in amusement. "Get up, lazy human!"

"Why, the sun had barely risen," he said, his voice muffled by the pillow.

"Exactly!" Arwen could no longer contain her excitement. "The sun has risen, and Eldarion hasn't woken up!"

As if touched by a magic staff, Aragorn immediately jumped to his feet. Arwen made him a sign to be quiet and walked towards the door between the two bedrooms.

The sight before them made them smile contently. Eldarion was sleeping peacefully, no sign of trouble on the youthful face. His lips were curled into a victorious smile, and Aragorn sighed in relief. Whatever dreams his son was having, they had to be pleasant.

Arwen walked to the bed and stroked the boy's tousled hair, but the small movement made Eldarion wake. Tired but happy grey eyes opened, and he looked at his parents questioningly. "_Ada? Nana?_ What is the matter?"

"You had no nightmares tonight, _ion nin_?" Arwen said, sounding slightly uncertain.

"No, and I don't think these dreams will return any time soon," Eldarion announced triumphantly.

Aragorn looked at his son in happiness and wonder. Everything they had tried to free the boy of these night terrors had been futile. What had changed now? What had they done to help Eldarion? He could remember nothing out of the ordinary that had happened the day before apart from showing the exotic new fruit to the boy. But he could not think of a way discovering bananas had helped the boy overcome his nightmares.

"_Nana_, I'm hungry," the child announced, unaware of his parents' astonishment. The happy couple exchanged a smile. Eldarion was coming back to normal.

---

Eldarion was the only one eating, as his parents were watching transfixed the transformation. Just a day ago the boy had seemed so frightened and insecure, and now he was calm and relaxed. However, the child was eating enough for all three of them, so the food didn't feel ignored.

The prince sneezed and took a sip of his tea. "It is cold here," he murmured.

"I'll bring you your coat," Arwen said and walked upstairs. She could not believe she had let her child out of bed so lightly dressed, but she had to admit that this morning her mind was elsewhere.

Aragorn continued to watch his son with a smile, as a sudden cry of terror pierced the silence. Immediately he jumped to his feet and rushed up the stairs. Eldarion looked after him with a shrug and continued eating.

"Arwen!" The king quickly embraced his distressed wife. "What happened? Are you alright?"

"Estel… what… why…" She tried to speak, but trembled in shock.

"Why what, _meleth nîn_?" He asked gently.

Arwen took a deep breath and managed to calm down enough to talk. "What are these two bound and gagged men doing in our son's closet?"

**THE END**

_Feedback? Definitely not one of my best ones, I know, but it was really hastily written and I hope you enjoyed it anyway._

_To all readers of "Faces of Darkness" – yes, it is coming :-)_

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